The spuds are planted

With a bit of help from our friend we have 6 rows of potatoes on the field.  3 rows are second early spuds, mainly Nicola and these will be dug bit by bit as we need them and for selling. The other 3 rows are different sorts of maincrop, some bought  and some saved from the sack of spuds we bought when what we grew last year ran out in January ( if you can follow that long sentence - well done!).

 We just have to take the potatoes from the hopper, put them into little cups as they go round and then each one is tipped out into the row and covered by the ridger behind.

Planting them is easy - getting them up is harder, and does my back no good at all which is why we don't grow as many as we did when we were 15 years younger and had three children at home.

So that's another job crossed off the Short Term this week/next week Job List.
That list has things like

1. Weeding the onions,
2.  Cutting the awkward bits of grass with small mower,
3.  Arrange collection of the oldest chickens
4.  See if we can get a cutting of a cultivated blackberry from our friend before he moves
5. Weed strawberry beds
6. Check gooseberries for sawfly every other day( month earlier than last year)
7. Dig and pot up the blackcurrant bush seedling that I spotted
8. Dig up all the raspberry runners that are in the wrong place 
9. Water everything if we don't get rain

C has been busy shifting the irrigation system down the road, after the 3 times yesterday it was 2 moves today. Each move takes about an hour. Apart from that and driving the tractor for the spud planting, he has also got the rails back on the fence posts ( the one blown down in December) and cut some grass over at our neighbours.
Finishing the fence is the first thing on the Big Jobs List. This is the list that has had things added on and crossed off for 22 years! But the list does actually look as if it is coming to an end.
"Only"  15  things to do

1.  Finish fence repairs by putting all the boards back on
2.  Alter the slab path that goes between back door and polytunnels
3.  Bring some soil round to fill in the bit that was concrete and will now be herb garden
4.  Finish breaking up and shifting the concrete and rubble that was under the old patio
5.  Dig out the roots from the old overgrown herb garden
6. Clear the old weed suppressant and shingle, level and sow grass seed.
7.  Take the turf off the place where the new shed is going and move it to the old patio space
8.  Lay a concrete base for new shed
9.  Build new potting/garden shed
10. Move everything from old shed to new
11.  Take down old tatty potting/garden shed
12.  Break up and remove concrete from under old shed
13.  Bring some soil round from the field to fill up the space
14.  Sow grass seed on it.
15.  Build a verandah along the back of the house.( I've always wanted a verandah!)

So what have I been doing today?
Well, it's obvious..............., I've been making lists!!

Back tomorrow
Sue